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Hi, All,
I need your advice and comment for my situation.
Husband and I are chinese. We are 2 years away from US citizenship. After 8 years of infertility search, we want to adopt a girl from china. We have family and friends to help us in China.
I am wondering if the following is feasible.
Do the adoption in China as chinese to adopt their own country's child;
My mother-in-law will take care of the child before we can bring her here;
After the citizenship, we file I-600 to bring her here. ( At that time, she will be a pre-adopted orphan by US citizenship).
What is your opnions on this?
Legally, nothing wrong with above process. But because the nature of US immigration, we might have problems to bring her here. In the law of immigartion, they assume we are gulity unless we prove otherwise. (So I think in my case, they will assume the child might not orphan, the adoption is not legal etc). We no way to let the US side invlove at the process of adoption if we do the adoption before my citizenship. That is no I-600A, no US-based adoption agency. CCAA in china might not involve either (we will try our best to go via CCAA). Off cource, we will need to obtain the documents from state the adoption is complete.
Another question, should I hide the fact We have adopted an orphan in China during my naturenation process? I just thinking if it will be easier to adopt the same child via US-agency after our citizenship. As long as CCAA can help, it might be able to work out. I will check with them before I do anything. Off cource, this will be very expensive beacuse of 2 adoption processes. We don't list the cost at the first concern. We just want a fast and easy way to have a child and bring her here.
Another option: do the immigration to Canada with the adopted child after citizenship, after 2 years of stay, file the I-130 for the adopted child.
Any way, I will try best to fight for my right to be a mother. Off cource, if God or fate will not give the child before the citizenship, things will be easier. We might to live kid free or adopt as US citizens. At time-being, we can't afford to wait the citizenship first because of our age. I am entering greatma age!
Thank you very much for your help.
Jane
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Even if it were feasible to adopt a child before becoming a citizen, it is not fair to the child to do so and then leave him/her with others for months at a time -- even if that someone is your mother-in-law.
Your child needs YOU and your husband, as close to 'round the clock as possible, especially in the first few months after adoption, in order to bond and attach properly. He/she will have been through a lot -- abandonment, life in an orphanage or foster home, etc. -- and will do much better if he/she is able to move directly to life with his/her new Mom and Dad.
You will avoid all kinds of hassles AND do a better job of being parents, if you wait until you become a citizen to adopt your child. I know that you feel you are getting older, but in the U.S., it is not uncommon for couples in their 40s and 50s to adopt and raise young children. I know; I adopted my daughter when I was 51.
The China adoption process for families in which at least one parent is a U.S. citizen is very routine and smooth, on both the Chinese and the American side. You should be able to have your child in the U.S. within a year of one of you getting your citizenship. And your child will become a U.S. citizen immediately, as long as both you and your husband travel to do the finalization.
The homestudy and USCIS clearance take a while, but they are not difficult. Dossier preparation is easy if you work with a good agency. China looks with favor on Americans of Chinese descent, and will often expedite their process or accommodate their requests -- for example, if you want a child from your ancestral province or a boy. And the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou will have no difficulty granting the child a visa if the adoption is done in the conventional way.
I would strongly suggest that you not even consider an alternate approach. It will cost you money, time, and anxiety, and could lead you into some troubled waters. If you feel that you MUST, however, you should be very careful to work with a respected U.S. immigration attorney to make sure that you won't run into any hassles on the U.S. end.
Sharon
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FWIW, I agree 100% with Sharon. While it may be legally feasible (the facts would have to be carefully considered by a qualified immigration attorney), it is not fair to any child to go from an orphanage to another caretaker (who will not love the child as you would) and then be uprooted again to move to your care. Your future needs parents to focus on her right from the start.
Having said that, IF you decide to adopt, then naturalize, do not hide the fact that you have a child from CIS during your naturalization process. CIS will find out when you apply to bring her to the US, and they may come after you for misrepresentation. Having a child in China will in no way impede your ability to naturalize; but hiding it could very well harm you. There is just no reason to do so.
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Thanks for the comments.
I want to do this due to our personal reasons. We both love our jobs and needs my paraent-in-law to help us to take care of the child .
Since it will be very easy for us to travel to China before our citizenship, I will try our best to stay with the child as long as possible. My mother-in-law can try a visit visa for come with us to help the transaction. In case like this, I can still have my job and take care the child in our own when she is easier to be taken care of. I can't see how much harm to the child in this way. In China, at least 80% children
are being taking care by grandma. it is diffcult to you to understand. that is the chinese culture: one generation help another generation. Right now, in the term of money, we support our both side parents for all live cost. My mother-in-law thinks it is her duty to take care of child for us.
In USA, one generation relatively live indepently for their own small family. (no law request to support parents, kids must be taken by parents). That is just culture difference. We can't say which one is better.
Maybe I am not ready for adoption. Since I am not willing to give up every thing to be a good mother. if no adoption before our citizenship, maybe we will live kid free. and maybe we don't apply the citizenship at all next year if we decide to live kid free. We will need the greencard status to visit relatives.
Thank you very much for the reply. adoption or not, and how to are our own decisions. We will do the process very carefully to avoid troubles. I am here just for legal advice of process of immigration.
Any way, I really think the adoption law should allow the green card holders to adopt orphans. I hope it would change soon and more orphans would have family in this way.
Thank a lot.
Jane
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Hi Jane,
Your question is not about what is right or wrong or what it should be or even about a way of life. It is about what it IS and the rules don't fit your situation. And it doesn't look like there is any change for Green Card holders in the near future.
Simply put you want to adopt a child from China and immigrate the child to the US. The least path of resistance for you to be an adoptive parent of a child comming from China to the US is to attain your US citizenship first. That doesn't mean you have to be a US Citizen before you get the ball rolling. There are some changes on the horizon that will make it worth your time to investigate with a Chinese Immigration Attorney which is really where you should bring this question.
Johnny
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I THINK....
That if you adopt in China first and do the US paperwork a significant amount of time later, you won't be able to bring him/her in on an I600 form...she won't meet the orphan criteria anymore.
Like the others, though, I would recommend you talk to a good immigration attorney who knows the ins and outs.
Good luck!
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